


Manchester

by ahappyphil



Category: Phandom/The Fantastic Foursome (YouTube RPF)
Genre: 2010, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-03-13
Updated: 2020-03-13
Packaged: 2021-02-28 16:42:33
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 954
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23130394
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ahappyphil/pseuds/ahappyphil
Summary: 13 March 2010 @amazingphil- “Looking at apartments in Manchester:]”
Relationships: Dan Howell/Phil Lester
Comments: 25
Kudos: 81





	Manchester

“It fucking sucks here, Phil. I can’t stand another eight months in this hell hole.”

Dan’s been lamenting on the phone to him for the past hour after a particularly heated discussion with his parents about his future. He’s not getting another job. Told them it was useless since he was moving this year, but they weren’t hearing it.

Phil tries to empathize. He tries to relate, but the truth is he can’t fully comprehend that situation. His own parents berate him about a job and his future almost daily these days too, but it’s always done with love and with the knowledge that despite their complaints they’d undoubtedly support him financially as long as he needed. He knows Dan isn't so lucky.

It’s just hard to put himself in those shoes, and if he’s honest it hurts thinking about Dan down south wallowing in his own misery before he can run away to Manchester. It makes him feel helpless. 

All he can do is quietly listen while Dan breathes heavy into the receiver, trying to calm himself down. It hurts because Phil knows what to do now when he gets like this. He’s figured out the best way to hold him close to his chest and stroke his hair until Dan either is ready to talk or falls asleep. Usually it's the latter. Dan doesn’t really sleep well unless he's with Phil. It’s another fact that Phil almost wishes he didn't know because he once again feels helpless against things that hurt the person he loves most.

“What if I got a place now? Instead of closer to start of term. Would you be able to stay with me this summer?”

He’d always planned on getting a flat in Manchester at some point after graduation, but falling back into the comfort of being near his parents and having them take care of him was embarrassingly easy. At times he almost felt like a teenager again. That is, until Dan started coming around and he remembered the value of privacy. 

He’s been saving up, using the money he doesn't blow on holidays and train tickets, to have enough for a deposit on his own place by the time Dan is ready to move.

But now the idea has been planted. The thought of a full summer with Dan. Uninterrupted. No parents. No uni stuff. Just them being exactly who and what they are to each other. He’d never have to pick up the phone to a crying Dan and feel utterly useless again.

He’s brought back to reality by Dan’s gasp.

“What? You think you can do that? Holy shit, Phil. That would be fucking amazing.”

“I’ve got some saved up and you know my parents will help. You can live with me before you go into the dorms in September and we can do YouTube stuff-“ Phil’s already worked himself up. Visions of having Dan all to himself and enjoying an entire summer without a mournful train station goodbye or a last morning together cuddle have clouded every rational thought in his brain. 

Dan seems giddy with the idea too as he quietly giggles into the phone. “Like a sexy summer camp! We can make pancakes and sleep til noon and you can be the nudist I know you are.” 

“Yeah…” He feels like a kid a bit, making grand scheme plans without the worry of their feasibility. That’s how Dan makes him feel most of the time, like the entire world is possible if they do it together. “You wanna share a bunk?”

*

His dad said no to fronting the first month, and he didn't have enough to cover it himself. He’d found the perfect flat after days of searching online and sending links back and forth with Dan. He’d gone to his parents like he was pitching funding for a company. He’d even printed out the listing, explaining how it’d help his career and he’d even get a part time job in town. It was still a resounding no. They want him to do it himself.

The worst part was after, when he stormed up to his bedroom like a petulant child and called Dan to tell him. He was met with a disappointed “oh” that felt like a stab to his heart. He wanted this so bad for Dan. For them. 

“You’re still coming to visit me as much as you can.” He’s doing his best to pull himself together and not let the pain show. “And we're still going to Portugal soon! Plus you’re still moving here and I’m still getting a flat. It just...will be a bit longer.”

Maybe he subconsciously feels a responsibility to keep positive. He’s keenly aware that despite Dan being his literal boyfriend and loving every part of him, even the parts that Phil didn’t really want him to see, sometimes Dan still needs AmazingPhil. Sometimes when it gets too dark in his brain, he subtly asks for that specific brand of light. Maybe he doesn’t even realize it. 

“Yeah.” Dan sounds defeated. “Just sucks. I started packing up some of my shit.” He lets out a sniff. “I’m ready to have you all to myself.”

“You will. In our hotel room when we’re on holiday! We can still have a sexy summer camp.”

That earns him a small laugh from Dan, which at times like these can almost be impossible, so he counts that as a win. 

“You’ll still be a nudist?” 

“We’ll both be nudists and order room service. Naked pancake three hour breakfasts.” He’s starting to smile himself. Maybe they need each other to get through the downs. Maybe Dan is his own source of light too. 

“I can’t wait.”

**Author's Note:**

> Reblog [here](https://ahappydnp.tumblr.com/post/612493567421726720/manchester-g-954-summary-13-march-2010) :)


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